Second time delightful at Pizzeria Mozza

Pizzeria Mozza originates from the City of Angels and we all know LA by any stretch of imagination and melted mozzarella isn't exactly famous for pizzas. Korean taco trucks? Mmm, maybe. Pizzas? Err…

On my previous visit, I thought Mozza was good but not spectacular. It was a fun place to eat at; the food was tasty though not mind blowing.

Part of the kicker, after all, is to make mere mortals such as us feel good about being able to afford to eat at a celebrity chef restaurant.

I would not go out of my way to have a meal there without a special reason or occasion; then somehow, the stars aligned and suddenly, there were two good reasons to make another trip there - kw’s dad’s birthday and Wicked.

The last time round, the starters were more impressive than the pizzas so we threw in more orders for antipastis.

Fried squash blossoms with ricotta

Light, oozy cheese stuffed in crispy, greasy deep-fried flowers.

Meatballs al forno

Well-seasoned meatballs, tasty marinara sauce that didn't taste like it was poured out of a can and crusty baguette slices. All in all, a good classic Italian antipasti.

Crispy goat cheese with Umbrian lentils

Crispy batter, pungent goat cheese and nerdy breads of scrumptiousness – loved the play of textures here.

Artichokes al forno with ricotta crostini

The ricotta was a light, creamy dream slathered on top of a crostini. I really didn’t like the artichoke … the texture was just wrong. Ok, maybe it wasn't but I didn't like the fibrous, crunch-less texture.

Clams al forno with salsa calabrese

Loooved these little babies. And there was some surprising kick from the salsa calabrese. We were given little forks to pry them out but why use them when you can slurp up the clams and juices in a morbidly unlady-like manner? Yum. We kept the sauce as we had grand slam-dunkin’ plans for them later on.

Most of Mozza's pizzas veer on the creative side but I learnt my lesson and silently voted in favour of the simpler pizzas. They both had crispy, chewy crusts that rose to our expectations and delight; but these crusts turned jaw-achingly tough quickly though so hello, clam juices!

Speck, pineapple, jalapeño, mozzarella & tomato

Kid-me loved the Hawaiian pizza but adult-me thinks putting pineapple on pizza is just wrong. Well, adult-me ate my words and downed a delicious sweet, salty slice.

Bacon, salami, fennel sausage, pancetta, tomato & mozzarella

At the heart of this pizza is a love for animal fat and salty goodness.

Though not off-the-charts delicious, Mozza's pizzas satisfied. I'm telling you, it's very very difficult for me to denounce anything doughy and cheesy. If we had any leftovers, I would be quite happy I pack it home, eat it straight out of the fridge -cold- in the middle of the night and pretend I sleep-ate.

Desserts were mandatory to round up our meal. Again expectations weren’t very high but I liked everything we had that evening.

Lime cheesecake, lime caramel

The lime cheesecake looked deceptively simple but I loved how the refreshing tanginess of the lime cuts right through the soft, creamy cake like a silent assassin.

Espresso granita: espresso gelato & honeycomb

Coffee gelato? Yes, please. Coffee gelato and honeycomb? Ooo, pretty please!

Caramel copetta with marshmallow sauce & salted Spanish peanuts

Luciously sweet, pow-wow salty, crunchy and crisp. Crazy delightful in an all-in-one package.

I enjoyed the food more at Pizzeria Mozza second time round. Warm service, tasty grub, while this might not be my go-to place for pizzas, I can almost always be assured of a good time.